Going Back in Time— My trip to Hawaii in 2020 part 2

Snorkeling

We then went snorkeling just outside the City of Refuge. It was an extremely rocky bay, so Jason and I went to where there were not as many people.

However, we chose an area where the waves and rocks are more dangerous (which is why the people were not there). Jason was snorkeling and so I went in. It was wonderful! The fish were so beautiful and exotic. Gradually, I was swept into the area where the waves pushed me into the rocks. I tried to climb out but couldn’t get a handhold. 

Jason had lost a flipper, so he was trying to find it. Someone came out and found Jason’s flipper and helped us get out. I discovered that my arm, legs, and hand were covered in sea urchin spines; the urchins had been hidden in the rocks I’d tried to climb out. They weren’t large spines, but I had quite a lot. Also, my right hand especially had been torn up because of the sharpness of the rocks where I’d tried to climb out.

Later, I ended up in the urgent care clinic trying to get my injuries repaired and to get a tetanus shot. The main treatment for sea urchins’ spines is to try to pull out the larger ones, soak the smaller ones in vinegar (and local tradition suggests urine). But the snorkeling was worth it.

Monday

Saddle Road

Ed at Pohakoloa Army Training

 are The first thing we did Monday was to drive across the Saddle Road from Kona to Hilo.

When we lived there, it was a narrow switchback road going up from Hilo; now it is a lovely two land road with climbing lanes. We drove by on the South side of the road, Ed’s old work—Pohakoloa Army Training area and Bradshaw Aviation site. They looked the same: Quonset huts and lava.

Ed enjoyed his time there. He was often able to fly to Oahu, or watch the whales swimming. 

Pohakoloa Army Training Area 2020

 He was also able to help the National Guard when they searched for marijuana planting areas hidden in the jungle. 

A number of his staff at the Airfield were native Hawaiians and they often invited him to their real luaus or the first birthday parties of their children (they don't celebrate the birth of their children much, because traditionally most didn't live long. Therefore on their first birthday, they had a party that rivaled a wedding. 

Wilder Road

We got off the main highway on Kaumana Drive and turned onto Wilder Drive about two

miles from Hilo. There we saw the house that we lived in all those years ago. Considering it is the same age as the house I live in today, it was newly renovated.

Our old home on Wilder R

When we lived in our house, there were sacred “ti” plants on the four corners, to keep the evil spirits out.

Marc on a pile of dirt as we made our back lawn

We had a small, untidy hedge consisting of poinsettia plants facing the road. The front yard was predominantly black lava rocks with various piles of lava representing mountains, rivers, etc.

We had “hapu’u” or tree ferns were about the yard, with Ed planting a row of them on the right side of the house and various small climbing orchids growing on it.

Our Hilo house in 2020

The backyard was a shallow layer of dirt planted in grass, over lava. Frogs loved to hide in the pockets of water in the backyard, and I recall turning on the back-patio light one night and watched the frogs jump in the yard. It wasn’t an ideal backyard to play football in, so Ed ordered a huge pile of dirt, leveled it out planted grass that made a real back yard.

The inside of the house had a dining room, three bedrooms, a kitchen, and two bathrooms. The master bedroom had in addition to an attaching bathroom, a dressing room with a mirror and a seat to sit and do your makeup. I loved the dressing room and when Ed and I finally retired from the military and built our home in Centerville, Ed remodeled the house and made me a dressing room (with a seat) as part of my bedroom.

Marc's jungle--a natural playground

Our subdivision was the last built on the side of the mountain and there was only jungle across the street from us. Marc and the other kids used to play in the jungle. I would go and yell, and they would hear me and come out. They were very familiar with the dangers of the jungle (bobby-trapped marijuana fields) and knew not to go near them.

Hilo

Hilo, itself hadn’t changed much. Walking along downtown I was reminded that we were all in tsunami territory. There was a terrible tsunami in 1946 that totally wiped out Hilo and Lau pahoehoe (which we’ll go to next). One of the reasons for being hit so hard was the bay in Hilo. It channeled the wave to become narrower and higher. 

I recalled years ago when we lived in Hawaii, we were in the downtown bay area (which does not have a lot of buildings) and the tsunami-warning horns blared. I didn’t know what to do and the kids kept running around. A uniformed man came and told us that it was just a warning, but if it had been real, we’d all have died because we didn’t head for high land.

Aiden, Diana, and Jason under the Banyan Tree

We ate at a place called “Lucy’s Taqueria” and had Mexican food. I had the hugest burrito I’ve ever seen. We went to a market and bought a coconut which we split open and had some coconut water.

On our way to Liliuokalani Park, we drove on Banyan Drive and saw lots of huge banyan trees. I recalled how in the summer when we lived in Hawaii, The Hilo Community Players (performing since 1938) always had a play in the park. I especially remember the year they

did “Midsummer’s Dream” under the Banyan Trees and it really was a treat. We took the kids, too—no wonder our kids are theater crazy!

Going Back in Time— My trip to Hawaii in 2020

Forty years ago, we lived on the Big Island of Hawaii. We lived there for 2 ½ years, from February 1978 to August 1980. It was an adventure—the tropics, an unspoiled paradise, prejudice, and so much more. In February of 2020, I returned to the Big Island with my daughter Diana and her family. But more than that, I went back in time in memory to those idyllic days.

Hawaii, forty years ago, was very primitive. I recall coming off the plane and coming down steps—not even

a ramp or unto a gateway. That was my first taste of what it would be like. The Big Island back then was predominantly Japanese—not haole (Caucasian), with plenty of Polynesian, Portuguese and Chinese mixed in. I recall the local McDonald’s in Hilo always served Sushi on their menu along with hamburgers, fries, and milkshakes. This time I came off the plane, we had ramps/stairs leading down from the plane and then we walked to the gate.

The local school our children attended was a small school with only 12 to 15 children in each class. Many were Polynesians, but also many were Japanese.

I checked online about the Kaumana Elementary School today, and here are the statistics

Kaumana Elementary School Enrollment By Race The student body of Kaumana Elementary School in Hilo, Hawaii County, Hawaii is made up of 7 ethnicities. The largest ethnic group of the 264 students at Kaumana Elementary School is Pacific Islander. This is followed by Asian (13.6 %), White (8.7 %), Hispanic (6.1 %), Mixed Students of two or more ethnicities (4.2 %), Indian (1.5 %) and Black (0.8 %). Race      Number            % Indian    4           1.5 % Asian     36         13.6 % Hispanic           16          6.1 % Black     2           0.8 % White    23         8.7 % Pacific Islander             172       65.2 % Two or More Ethnicities           11          4.2 %

When we lived in Hilo, each classroom had a door to the outside and a deck with a water faucet right by the door. The kids usually wore flip-flops and you took them off, washed your feet and went into the classroom barefoot. You can see from the above photo; they’ve updated the school and each classroom does not have a door to the outside.

In 1978, the first Safeway in Hilo was opened and back then, it was not popular. Most people preferred their Mom & Pop bread stores, vegetable stores, fish & meat stores. Safeway did eventually become more popular, and today those downtown individual stores are now tourist boutiques.
Everywhere I saw louvered windows, although more and more had screens on the window. When we lived there, that was the main type of window you had.

Living in Hawaii was laid back in the past. And I discovered as we went everywhere—it is just as laid back today, with servers taking a long time to come, and sitting talking to each other rather than serve customers; hotels took a long time to answer your questions or supplies.

  

Sunday

Church

The first thing we did Sunday morning was attended Church; and yes, they had louvered windows on them!

The service was the same as years ago, and after the meeting ended, a young woman who was moving came up and the audience sang “Aloha Oe” (Farewell to Thee), with the words on the inside back cover of the hymn book. I almost cried because that’s what we always did when someone left the ward. (FYI: I’ve requested that “Aloha Oe” be sung at my funeral).

City of Refuge

One of my most favorite places we visited on the Big Island was the City of Refuge, Pu’uhonua o Honaunau,

on the Kona Coast. In the ancient Hawaiian times, there were “kapus,” forbidden rules; when a commoner casts his shadow on an Ali’i (chief), or a woman eats with a man, or someone catches a fish out of season—all these were “kapu” or forbidden. Break any of these (and more) and you face the ultimate punishment of death. However, if you could elude your pursuers on foot, get to the coast and swim to the City of Refuge, you could be resolved by a priest.

Also, during a war, the site was a sanctuary for children, elders and other noncombatants. Even defeated warriors could seek safety in the refuge, and after the battle ended, return home, whatever the outcome of the battle.

Also, next to the City of Refuge were the Royal Grounds, where Ali’i met with their advisers and priests. On the site are examples of a favorite game of the Hawaiians, played on a rock board with tiny black and white pebbles.

They also had an ancient game (konane) that was on a flat rock and had small indents on it to hold the white

and black rocks. Above you can see Athena and Diana playing the game in 1979 and a closer look at the game, today.

The Royal Grounds also had a special “chair” made of rock for the chief to sit and watch the water, and a special rock where the chief’s wife angered the king and she ran with her dog and hid under a rock. He didn’t notice her until her dog barked. It reminded me that even Hawaiian royalty had marital problems.

I was pleased that the City of Refuge hadn’t changed much during the years, as you can see from the pictures I’ve attached of then and now. The City of Refuge was a joy to walk around in. We saw “noni” (morindra citrifolia) fruit, which was a stable of Hawaiian food, but also made many medicines for them.

The hand-carved tikis represented the image of various Polynesian gods and personified the specific “mana” or power of that God. These tikis tried to please the gods and break good harvest and weather, as well as success and power during wars.

I Want to Be a Missionary--part 2

Pass-along cards

But I never stopped trying to serve a mission by befriending and loving those who were not 
active in the Church or non-members. Whenever Ed and I traveled, a brought along a Book of Mormon or two, pass-along cards and Article of Faith cards, but I never used them. I felt more of a failure as a missionary than ever.

As I grew older, I began to consider a family history mission after I retired from work because I loved genealogy. I recall clearly when I was 12 years old and visited my Grandmother Hansen in Monroe, Utah. (As far as I can determine, I was the only grandchild who ever stayed a week or so with her, and I don’t know why I was so blessed.) She taught me to do genealogy and sew!!! An avid genealogist, she had done family work for about 50 years and researched her line and her husband’s line extensively. I caught the genealogy bug from her at that time.

My Grandmother Hansen

I copied many of the family histories she had, and any time I was in Utah, I would try to get more genealogy from my grandmother’s family. After we retired to Utah, my cousin and I went to southern Utah and got two boxes of my grandmother’s genealogy from my father’s cousin, Agnes Holgate. I also attended all the family reunions and gathered more information and family histories. Reluctantly I copied my grandmother’s genealogies and sent them to my sister Ann, because I was working full-time and didn’t have time to do more with them.

When Ed and I retired from work in 2009, I still hoped that we could serve a couple mission, but six months before our

Ed right after his lung transplant

retirement, Ed’s health declined rapidly, and six months after we retired, we moved to Los Angeles for him to get a lung transplant. It took us nine months before we could go back home, but it gave Ed four good years of life. We were able to travel as we’d hoped to do after retirement, but a mission was not in our plans.

When Ed died two-and-half years ago, I considered a mission again, but so many things interfered. It took a year to settle things from his death, and my health continued to be a major problem.

Ed and I had traveled a lot in the four years he was healthy and we set aside a monthly savings account to pay for these trips. After his death, I

Ed and I on one of our vacations

decided to take my grandchildren on a trip somewhere when they graduated from high school, college or finished a mission. I had grandchildren on both coasts of the country and this was a way I could bound with them and continue to travel. I took two grandchildren to Costa Rica where my grandson had recently returned from a mission in 2016; I brought along my standard missionary stuff, but the closest I came to talking to anyone about the church was on a snorkeling excursion when a lady in our boat and I talked about family history, and I gave her my card, with information about family

Snorkeling with my grandkids in Costa Rica

search.

I recall very clearly where I was sitting in one Sacrament Meeting when Stake President Blair Morris issued a challenge for every available individual to serve a mission. He told of a couple serving a mission when the husband died, and President Morris felt inspired to call on a couple in our stake who’d never considered a mission, but who had been praying to serve in some way. They quickly adjusted their schedules and took the place of the couple who had been released.

Me

I received the inspiration as he talked that I MUST serve a mission as a family history missionary, and I should prepare to do so. It had been in the back of my mind since my husband had died to serve a family history mission, but President Morris’ talk confirmed to me that now was the time.

I worked on my serious health problems, and I volunteered to work at the Bountiful Utah Family History Library. I set the deadline to begin missionary service as June 2017. I planned on taking my granddaughter, Kira, whose father and everyone in his family were inactive in the church, on a cruise in May 2017, and I felt like that since the next grandchild to graduate was three years away I could complete a mission in the meantime.

But it wasn’t that easy; in March 2017, I had my gall bladder removed, and had complications; I ended up back in the hospital for two days. No one could figure out why I was having so much trouble with my breathing, and I was on oxygen, first all day, then after a month or so, just at night. I felt worried that I couldn’t serve two full days a week as a missionary in the Salt Lake City Family History Center if I was still having health problems, but I kept praying for reassurance that I should serve as a missionary.

Me & my granddaughter cave tubing in Belize

During my Caribbean cruise with my granddaughter Kira in May of 2017, I continued to pray daily to be a missionary and again brought missionary stuff with me. I tried to talk to people about the Church, but had little success. One night I was again praying for a missionary experience, and expressing my thoughts of failure, when the thought came to me that I was being a missionary to Kira, who along with her family wasn’t active in the Church. I often had the opportunity to share spiritual experiences with Kira that my mother, my grandfather and I had had in our lives. It wasn’t in a “Here is the missionary message I need to give you,” but in a relaxed and casual way as we talked about our family. It just came naturally. I had the reassurance that there are many ways to be a missionary, and this was one good way.

I wish I could say I started my mission in June 2017, but I discovered I had bad cataracts in both eyes, and surgery to repair them was scheduled during June and July. My lung problems seemed to be resolved; I no longer needed to be on oxygen, although they never determined a reason for my problems, and there was no positive assurance that I would not have a relapse. But I knew that it was time to put in my paperwork to serve a mission in September 2017.

I know that there is a time for every season, and this is my season to serve a mission, and I am looking forward to it!  I am excited about going on a mission—even if I am in my mid-70s.

Take Grandchildren to Costa Rica? Why Not? (Part 1)

Recently I took two of my grandchildren, one 18 and one 21-years-old to Costa Rica with me for a vacation. The oldest, James, had returned from a two-year mission to Costa Rica six months earlier, so I decided he could translate and show us his mission.

Our trip was a ball. Having two young adults along helped me feel young again. I tried very hard to keep up with them, although I am sure that they feel I failed.

We arrived in San Jose, the capitol city on Saturday night. One difficulty I discovered while booking

James at customs

the flight was that it is hard to go from Salt Lake City to Costa Rica. Your best bet is to go through Houston Airport, and depending on your layover, your trip could last from eight to 21 hours, and often stretch into the next day. Luckily I was able book a flight that could eight hours going and 10 hours coming back. So we left Salt Lake City at 5:30 a.m. and arrived in San Jose at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, August 6, 2016. In Houston Airport we only had a short time to go from one gate to the other. When we’d left Salt Lake City, it told us to go to one gate, but we didn’t know that they’d changed gates while we were in the air, so we hiked to one gate only to find that it was wrong and we had to go to another gate a long way away. We were almost running to make the flight which was boarding, when I flagged down one of the carts and they got us there before they finished boarding.

Just to get through customs in San Jose took over an hour; even though there were 28 incoming booths for non-residents to check through, only four were open. I guess they have a two-day weekend for government workers. All we did was check into our hotel and rest.

Jenni at church

Sunday we took a taxi to the local church, where James had attended while he was the Mission’s financial secretary. It was fun for him to see local members, and we “enjoyed” three meetings in Spanish. It was fast meeting, so we felt the spirit, even though we didn’t understand a word. Sing in Spanish wasn’t too hard as I had lived in Italy and sung in Italian—but I am afraid I probably sang the hymns with an Italian accent, as I often pronounce Spanish in the Italian way—which is different.

In Sunday School, the teacher used his tablet to play a church video on the large flat screen TV. I was amazed at the use of technology that as a church librarian I had tried to encourage. They certainly needed to encouragement to use it in a “Third Country.” Right then I realized that Costa Rica is not a third world, but as modern as the United States. Everyone had the newest cell phones, and used them all the time.

Relief Society was fun as a sister from Texas visiting her mother in San Jose, interpreted for me! The lesson by a member of the Relief Society presidency was about visiting teaching and very creative. She showed us a survival visiting teacher kit, and pulled out items and correlated them to visiting teaching. I wrote down the very BASICS of it.

1.       Lock: Lock your mouth about anything your sisters tell you.

2.       Soap: Always have clean thoughts

3.       Toothpaste & brush: Always have a beautiful smile

4.       Rubber band: Be flexible & visit when your sisters can have you come.

5.       Q-tips: Clean your ears so you can listen carefully to their needs

6.       Cotton balls: Speak softly and have a soft heart

Who would ever think that one of the most creative Relief Society lessons I have ever heard was in Costa Rica?

After church we walked to several members’ houses. The first home was a very humble one of a sister who served us baked Yucca and Gallo pinto (their favorite food of rice and black beans). Four of the local missionaries ate with us, and she stretch a pork roast to serve far more people than it was designed for. Again, a very humble home with boards showing through to the open air, but the sister’s daughter sported a cell phone.

Next we visited the ward mission leader and his huge family that lived together in one home that had been stretched to make several homes. All of the grown members of the family, along with their children, sported and used NICE cell phones. They had a large flat-screen TV in the living room.

I had fasted that day and as the day went on, I began to get a migraine! Finally, I excused myself, leaving my grandchildren there speaking all Spanish, and took a taxi home. I hadn’t gotten used to the currency exchange, and my head was so foggy that I watched the taxi’s price counter go higher and higher. I began to panic because I thought it said, “60 million colones,” (about US $120.00), and panicked because I had barely brought that much money with me. When I gave him the money, he corrected me and told me it was only “6 million colones” about $12.00 US money. I was so grateful that he was so honest as I was totally a ditzy tourist. My grandchildren were still hungry, even after a lunch and two Costa Rican traditional dinners, so we ate at the hotel restaurant, which served the most flavorful salmon I’ve ever taste (either that or I was starved after eating only protein bars that afternoon).

Monday I rented a car and we drove across the country to the Pacific beaches of Guanacaste. 

 

Coffee plants

I hate to drive or ride in a car, and my driver was my 21-year-old grandson, so I quailed at the thought, but it was okay. I felt at peace and enjoyed the trip, which I know was a real blessing. Taking a private shuttle there was $500.00 each way, and the bus stopped in every town and took forever. I even checked on flying—but it was prohibitive, too. Fortunately, the rental car cost $210 (including insurance) for four days.

There is a way to get to Guanacaste that is much more modern and faster than I realized, but I had downloaded a google navigator map on my phone and we followed it. We left in a torrential rainstorm, which added to the fun. I assume I had chosen on the app that

Along side of the road

I wanted to avoid toll roads (of which there are many around San Jose), so it took us on every mountainous back road in the country. It was beautiful and reminded me of the very rural big island of Hawaii where we lived during the late 1970s, and I kept repeating the thought every time we saw something new. Heavy rain accompanied us for over five hours—until we reached the desert plains of Guanacaste.

Our hotel resort was on the beach of Playa el Coco, and we could walk down to the beach, which was

Our hotel

really fun. Our suite had a full kitchen, living room and one bedroom with two double beds and a futon bed in the living area for my grandson. IT WAS AIR-CONDITIONED, which was wonderful in the 90-degree weather with 90% humidity. Yes, I am a wimp, but I walked around with my clothes completely wet unless I was in the suite. Up above, looking over the cove, was a restaurant, lots of swimming pools, a cafeteria (which we never saw open), a gift shop and other facilities. We could take a shuttle that came every five minutes, or we could walk the steep incline. I decided I’d walk down, not up.

On Tuesday, we goofed around, bought food at the gift shop, then body-surfed in the beautiful beach. I had reserved a snorkeling tour for the afternoon, and it was fantastic.

James with pufferfish

We first went to some rocky islands in the bay. I hadn’t snorkeled for years, and it was something I’d always loved to do, especially on our favorite beach of Kona, in Hawaii and on the Baja coast of Mexico. We saw tons of beautiful fish, and the guide showed us a pufferfish and a spiked pufferfish. I don’t swim, so I used a life vest, but still was able to enjoy the sights. I wandered and every once in a while, my grandson would come checking on me to make sure I wasn’t lost.

Next we went to a beautiful secluded beach and snorkeled where the water wasn’t over our head. The guide gave us fresh Costa Rican pineapple and part of the time I rested. I had had rotator cuff surgery two months previous to our trip and my arm wasn’t as strong as I had liked.

One other lady was on our snorkeling tour with us, and I enjoyed talking to her about genealogy, of which I am a tremendous fan. 

(TO BE CONTINUED)